RIC campus police fleet receives facelift, 2 new cars

RIC President Nancy Carriuolo is joined by three members of RIC campus police, including, from left, Officer Frank Duffy, Deputy Chief Fred Ghio and Officer Don Oulette.

This fall, the campus police vehicles will get a new look along with two new cars to add to the fleet.

The new design features lettering in the school colors, the RIC Anchorman logo on the back doors, and a new police shield in a black, gold and maroon color scheme.

This Ford Taurus was donated by RIC's Athletic Department.

The RIC slogan “Reach, Inspire, Connect” appears on the back of each car. As part of the design, each vehicle will also have “Protect, Serve, and Educate” on the hood and the 911 emergency number painted on the back.

Lighting is being improved on all vehicles to help improve efficiency in emergency situations.

The police car renovations were done on-campus. Dan Gannon, RIC’s sign coordinator, created the new look. The design is based on the graphics used by Georgia College and State University, whose vehicles were voted number one in college departments in the 2009 Law and Order magazine Vehicle Graphic Design contest.

The RIC Athletic Department and the Rhode Island State Police donated two new cars to the fleet – a 2002 Ford Taurus and 1998 Ford Crown Victoria.

RIC President Nancy Carriuolo wanted the campus police to have a more official and unified look.

“Safety was one of the themes I announced at my inauguration as president. I want the campus community to be able to identify our police vehicles easily and seek their assistance whenever needed,” said Carriuolo.

RIC police vehicle with new graphics and other improvements.

She added that Don Tencher, director of athletics, has been assisting her with a variety of safety issues on campus, and was helpful in coordinating work being done on the fleet of vehicles.

As of June 14, there were two cars painted with the new graphics. The department expects the remaining cars in the fleet to be painted in the coming weeks.

Campus police officers will wear new uniforms as well that incorporate the new shield and school colors.

The new vehicle graphics and uniforms instill “a sense of pride in the officers because they feel it’s a more professional look,” said Fred Ghio, deputy chief of campus police.